Willie Nelson: Band of Brothers

Willie Nelson's first collection of mostly new songs in nearly 20 years is an event from any perspective, and the country/crossover legend does not disappoint. Covers include "Hard to Be an Outlaw" and "The Git Go" by Billy Joe Shavers, but it's on his own nine tunes that Nelson shines most brightly, including "I've Got a Lot of Traveling to Do," "The Songwriters," "Used to Her," "Guitar in the Corner," and "I Thought I Left You."

"There's no grimness on Band of Brothers, no bleak admissions of mortality or putting-affairs-in-order solemnity…. Age ain't nothin' but a number to Nelson…. Even on 'The Wall' and 'Bring It On', both of which reminisce about the hardships and regrets of a life spent on the bus, Nelson sounds triumphant rather than weary. 'I hit the wall,' he sings, less like a beaten man and more like Joshua at Jericho: 'And the wall came down.'… His band on Brothers tears through these sad songs and waltzes with unfussy professionalism, nimbly navigating the wanted-man recklessness of 'Wives and Girlfriends' and the spry Western Swing of 'Used to Her'. And Willie sings them like he can't believe he gets to hear Mickey Raphael play harmonica every night."—Pitchfork